Challenging Fate
by Shirayuki Hoshi
Summary: BEING REWRITTEN! REWRITE WILL BE UPLOADED SEPERATELY. I knew from the start that our journey wasn't going to be easy. And our challenges weren't monsters or the Magi. The biggest challenge we would ever face in our whole lives, was fate. It was hard enough for me, especially while hiding a heavy burden.
1. Introduction

_**Hi, Kamikaze Hoshi here. This is my first story on FanFiction, so it may be kind of…crappy. Well, I still hope you like it~ (Don't worry, I won't be surprised if you don't). By the way, the prologues are just filler, but you have to read them. That is unless you wish to be confused later in the story...**__**

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I sat on the bridge near the river in Greydall Plain. Life got boring stuck inside a castle all day. Even I was allowed to go out of the castle I had to stay in the kingdom's walls. Obviously I never followed that rule and I would go outside into the world. Now look, I was only eight years old. I didn't go further than the first bridge in Greydall and in Balastor Plain I didn't go any further than halfway to Parma. The sun was currently setting in the brilliant sky of red, blue, and orange.

"Well, time to go," I said to myself. I stood up and walked to Balandor. Sunset was "rush hour." People ran to all different places around me and once a person knocked me over, making a small rip in my blue dress. I growled and started walking again toward the castle. Let me say a small explanation stating that I'm _not_ a princess. I'm an adopted orphan given to the King Valtos and the Queen Floraine when I was about five-years old. …Okay, I admit. I'm a princess, but I really just didn't like it when people flatter me and respect me and all those other things. It got annoying. (Back to the story) I walked into my room in the castle after walking up 10 flights of stairs.

_Why do castles have to be so tall? _I thought. I was panting by the time I reached my room. My eyes flicked looking out the window. The sunset looked brilliant as usual. But there seemed something that made it more vivid and vibrant this evening. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but there was something so much more beautiful. My last glance at it, I think I saw a silver glow in the clouds.


	2. Prologue: Part 1

I was outside of kingdom walls again today. This time, I was in Balastor Plain. I had to admit this plain was more beautiful than Greydall. Right now, I was picking wildflowers near east of the fork in the road about halfway to Parma. Out of nowhere, a Kibble wobbled up to me. I looked at it confused. Then it held out its hand.

"Oh, you want a flower! Well, here," I said laying out my flowers. "Take as many as you want." The Kibble made the purring-ish sound they usually make as it took all my flowers. I watched the Kibble walk away and then I stood up to find another spot to pick flowers. Just when I sat in another flower bed, I saw a Vespid fly toward me. I screamed and started to run, but the Vespid kept following me. Eventually, I tripped over a rock which caused me to get a long cut in my shin.

"No, no, no!" I cried. The cut in my shin was pretty long, and it was in the middle of shallow and deep. I couldn't walk, and I was no better at standing. My eyes stared at the Vespid coming at me. Right when it was about to hit me, an arrow came flying right at the Vespid, and the Vespid dissolved into a cloud of dust.

"Hey, are you okay?" a voice that sounded about eight or nine-years old said. I looked up and saw a boy run up to me. Judging by his attire, he was definitely from Balandor. He had very dark turquoise hair that was almost black, pale skin, and teal eyes. Actually, my first thought about him was that he was really cute.

I let out another yelp of pain when the boy moved my leg so he could see my wound. "Who are you?"

He looked up and smiled. "My name's Setti. Who're you?"

"I'm Valora. Adopted daughter of the king and queen," I said. "By the way, please don't call me 'Princess Valora.' I prefer just to be called Valora."

"Okay then, _Valora_," he pulled out a roll of bandages and started wrapping it around my leg. "How old are you?"

"I'm eight," I said shyly. Setti looked at me surprised.

"Really? I thought you were five," Setti said. "Somehow, your pitch black hair and your sparkling silver eyes along with your cute face makes you look younger. Oh, I guess I should tell you my age in return. I'm ten-years old." Setti finished wrapping my leg and he helped me up. I could stand better, but my leg still hurt.

Setti and I spent the day together chatting and walking around Balastor Plain. He told me that his father's name was Medius and that he had an adoptive brother named Grazel. Then I told him about what the castle was like. I told him about Floraine and Valtos, and about Cisna. I enjoyed telling him about how stupid the castle guards were. When it was sunset, Setti walked me to the castle. When I walked in my room, Cisna was there. She had a mischievous smile on her face, which made me feel worried.

"Err…um…hey Cisna, what's up?" I said.

"I saw that boy you were walking with. Is he your boyfriend?" she giggled. I lightly slapped her on the arm.

"I'm too young to have a boyfriend! He's just a _friend._ Okay, Cisna? Did the words 'just a friend' meet your mind?" I said. She just giggled and walked out of my room. Cisna could be such a weirdo. Well, there was no helping that. I changed into my night gown and went to bed.

On a normal basis, I started meeting Setti in Balastor or Greydall plain. We played, chatted, and explored together. Today we were in Balastor and apparently Setti wanted to show me something. We ran through the plains, but I had a hard time keeping up with him. He had so much more energy than I did.

"Setti, can *pant* you *cough* slow down? I can't keep up with you!" I panted. He shook his head.

"No, Valora! I really want to show you!" Setti said. He grabbed my hand and held it tightly. I was puzzled about that, and at the same time I was speechless. We finally stopped in front of a cave ((author's note: this is the cave where the group found [older] Setti finding rocks)). Setti (still holding my hand) opened the two doors and walked inside. He guided me down a path leading me into a clearing.

"This is what you wanted to show me, huh?" I said. I let go of Setti's hand and walked around. Even though the cave was gloomy, I felt an aura that gave me an urge to do…something. I couldn't quite tell but I just knew there was something for me in the cave. Wait a minute, when could I feel aura?

"Oh no, I forgot! Sorry, Valora. There was something I promised to help Grazel and my father with something. You know your way back, right? Well, see ya," he said and ran off.

"Well, in a way it's a good thing he left," I said shrugging. I returned to walking around the cave, trying to feel where the aura was strongest. Then I noticed something silver in the middle of the cave. I walked up to it and I almost felt a blast of nature aura. My hand pulled out a silver ribbon which glowed brightly silver. Almost right when I picked it up, I was transported somewhere else. It seemed like…I wasn't even on earth anymore. Clouds surrounded me and on my right, the sun shined brightly in the sky, but somehow I could manage looking straight at it. The clouds around the sun were pure white and they seemed to be glowing. On my left side, the sky was blacker than my hair, but the moon shone as brightly as the sun lighting up the dark sky. When some of the clouds cleared, I realized I was standing on grass as green as a leaf on a tree. Speaking of trees, there was a tree to my left with bark a chocolate brown and the leaves were rainbow colored. Ahead of me there were flowers with light green stems and with petals sparkling silver.

The same color of my eyes.

"Where am I?" I breathed.

"A special place, that's where," a man's voice with an Irish accent ((author's note: or whatever Kara's accent is)) said. I turned around and saw six teenagers. Three guys and three girls. They all looked like normal people, but their aura was so strong I could've been blown away. I tried to think why normal looking people would have such a powerful aura. Then it occurred to me.

"You…you guys are gods," I said. My fingers trembled, and soon that tremble went all over my body. "Wh-why am I here?"

"Why don't we introduce ourselves…" the guy with the Irish accent said, "I'm Dinivas, the god of darkness. I'm also the creator of the Black Knight." Dinivas had hair as black as night and eyes an onyx color. He looked like a cat, but he was handsome. Dinivas acted calm, and his voice made him seem like he was pretty bored.

"I'm Wizel, the god of Light. Twin brother of Dinivas," Wizel said. "I'm the creator of the White Knight." Wizel had hair so blonde I almost thought it was bleached and his eyes were as blue as the sky. [No offense to blondies] I always had a very small interest for blondies, but Wizel was knockout handsome. He didn't have facial hair. He didn't have a princely look, either. Despite his non-princely face, his voice was really charming.

"Name's Aldomaea, god of the Sun. Creator of the Sun King," Aldomaea said. He had light brown hair and his iris color looked like a ball of flames. Aldomaea was not even _close_ to handsome. He wasn't even cute. I guess…he would be described as _hot_. "Now for my twin sister—"

"Lutius, goddess of the Moon. I'm the twin sister of Aldomaea and older sister of Dinivas and Wizel. I'm the creator of the Moon Princess," Lutius said. She had silky pink hair and her white irises glowed as bright as the moon. Heck, Lutius was _really _radiant. Dazzling, really ((author: not like those nasty superstar ladies who wear too much makeup)). She wasn't beautiful or cute; she was hot like her twin. Her voice sounded beautiful. Just imagine the most beautiful bell sound you have ever heard. That's what her voice sounds like.

"And me, Larvayne. I'm goddess of Animals," Larvayne said. "Also creator of the Dragon Knight." She had light brown hair and fierce red eyes. Well, even though she looked a little "wild," she was still really pretty. Her skin was dark ((author: like Caesar's skin)) but she had a face that had pure mischief. Larvayne's voice sounded fierce, kind of like a tiger.

"Last and definitely not least, I'm Athrenia, goddess of all Nature. I'm the youngest out of my siblings, but the most powerful," Athrenia said. Athrenia was about five times lovelier than her siblings combined, with her silver hair and her silver eyes looked like diamonds. She looked so innocent. Still, she was extremely radiant like Lutius. Maybe even more radiant. What's more is that she didn't have any makeup or anything along those lines to support her beauty. And her voice was delicate. She sounded like a beautiful bird chirping when she spoke. (Back to the story) Wizel waved his hand and the clouds cleared. Dinivas snapped his fingers and Lutius waved her right arm, causing the "darker side" of the garden to clear. A sky blue color spread above us and the sun moved overhead. I could see the gods clearer, but I turned my attention to Athrenia. Her eyes were exactly like mine. Her eyes were Asian-American and they were sparkling silver.

"Okay, back to the point. You're here because you picked up the Silver Knight's Ark, which is that ribbon you're holding," Athrenia said. I was about to say why I could only see it, but it seemed that Athrenia read my mind. "You're wondering why Setti didn't see it, because he found the cave long before you did. Millennia ago, I cast a spell upon the Ark so that only the destined Pactmaker could see it."

"Wait, hold up. Are you saying _I'm _the destined Pactmaker for the Silver Knight?" I said. "Is that why my eyes are silver like yours, Athrenia? Is that why I have a fixation for nature? Is that why I have a soft spot for Kibbles and Polkans?"

Athrenia sighed. "Yes, yes, and yes. Oh yeah, but you don't have all of that because you just all of a sudden became the Pactmaker of the Silver Knight. You were born _naturally_ with those characteristics. I didn't make you have them. Look, I may be a goddess, but I can't do everything. You were chosen because of those characteristics. Okay, enough with the explaining. Come forward, Valora. I have to bind your soul to the Knight." Cautiously, I walked forward. Athrenia held an end of the ribbon, and I started to glow silver. When the glow died, I felt so much stronger.

"Your soul is now bound to the Silver Knight. Well, see you soon Valora," Athrenia said. I felt lightheaded and I think I fainted.


	3. Prologue: Part 2

I woke up on my bed. On my left wrist there was a silver ribbon tied in a bow. Oh yeah, I was the Silver Knight. While sighing for no apparent reason, I used my powers and the roots from a flower in my room to open my drawer and used the wind to pick out one of my dresses and then I set it on my bed. After I put on my dress, I walked outside and into Balastor Plain. I walked to the river, and I saw a beautiful eighteen-year old with silver hair and silver eyes sitting near the river.

"Hi there, Athrenia," I said and I sat beside her. Athrenia looked at me and smiled brightly.

"Hi there, Valora. Even though I'm the most powerful out of my siblings, I'm not allowed to go out of the heavens without Aldomaea's permission. Sigh…this is what happens when you're the youngest," Athrenia said. "Before Aldomaea wakes up, I need to make sure you're aware of your powers."

"I was using them this morning, Athrenia. Plus, I know the powers already of the Pactmakers of the Silver Knight," I said.

Athrenia shook her head. "It's not like that, Valora. Long ago in the Dogma Age, my Pactmakers had many more abilities than you have now. So did the Knight. That was when my siblings confirmed that their tiny-and-supposedly-weak-little-sister was the strongest god. I became devastated thinking I made the wrong choice creating the Silver Knight and granting the Pactmakers so many abilities. I also granted the Athwani use of elemental magic, when they formerly casted curses. That gave me the title 'The Neutral Goddess.' When my siblings' Knights were sealed away, I reduced the amount of abilities the Pactmakers of my Knight had."

"What abilities were so different than the ones I have now?" I asked.

"Well, there were a lot back then. I reduced most of them, except my fires. I really over-did it with the fire. My red fire was twice as bright and hot as a normal fire. The biggest mistake I did was creating a new element, which is blue fire. I'm here to see which fire you posses." Athrenia materialized a leaf the size of her palm. "Ignite this leaf with your fire." I pinched the leaf with my pointer finger and my thumb. A blue flame froze the leaf, and there were small blue flames on my fingers. Athrenia stared at the flame on the leaf, and it extinguished. She then looked at me with a worried look.

"I-I'll go into detail explaining the blue fire to you. Blue fire is far more powerful than its cousins, the other elements. It is far more effective than a red fire in several ways as well. First of all, this fire can't be extinguished with water. Technically, it keeps burning unless the caster manually extinguishes the flame or the flame completely freezes the target. Second of all, it's a lot brighter than any flame period. Making a candle flame on your finger and it could light up a whole room. Oh no, I can sense Aldomaea awakening. I'll tell you more another time. See you!" and with that statement, Athrenia vanished in the winds. "Oh yeah, talk to a man named Medius. He knows quite a bit about the Knights." I assumed that she used telepathy to tell me that. "By the way, since I'm skilled in using double swords, my Pactmakers are too. In your room, there will be two short swords on your bed. Those were the same swords used in the Dogma Age."

I sat by the waterfall near the cave I found the Silver Knight's Ark. With my powers, I made the water rise and fall. Once I froze it, but then I immediately turned it back into water. I sighed and lied down on my back. Apparently, I didn't hit the ground. Someone put their arms around my waist, preventing me from hitting the ground. I looked down at my waist and saw pale hands.

"Setti!" I exclaimed. "Don't scare me like that!" I pried his arms off my waist, stood up, and hugged him.

"H-hey!" Setti said embarrassed. I looked up at him smiling and he blushed.

"I'm doing this as _friends_," I said. I let go of him and changed my expression to serious. "Sorry for the sudden mood swing, but have you heard of 'The Knights'?"

Setti looked at me surprised. "Yeah, my father knows all about them. Why?" I told him about me being the Silver Knight. I didn't include the details of me having a chat with the gods, though.

"You're the Silver Knight…the most powerful Knight," Setti said. "I'll take you to my father immediately."

Setti walked me to his house. His house was the house with the blue roof. It was the only house with a blue roof in Balandor, so it really stood out. When we walked in, I nearly bumped into a boy at least two years older than Setti. He had silver hair and light purple eyes.

"Hey, Grazel," Setti greeted.

Grazel turned his attention to me. "You must be the Valora girl Setti always talks about. Well, it's an honor to meet you." Setti dragged me in the house and gestured me to set down. I saw Setti's father, Medius, on the other side of the room.

"Father, this is my friend Valora. She needs you to explain some things," Setti said.

Medius sat down in the chair across from me. "I will explain anything, as long as it is within my knowledge."

"Thank you, sir. I want to know everything you know about the Silver Knight and the Dogma Legend."

"And why is this?" he asked. I glanced over at Setti, and he nodded.

"I don't want to cause accidental destruction. I'm unaware of most of my abilities. You see, I'm the Pactmaker of the Silver Knight," I said. I glanced over at Grazel, and he raised his eyebrows in shock.

Medius paled. "Very well. I shall tell you everything I know."

Medius told me things about the Silver Knight that went beyond my imagination. I now understood what Athrenia meant when she said "she became devastated thinking she made the wrong choice creating the Silver Knight and granting the Pactmakers so many abilities." The Silver Knight was so outrageously powerful. What's more is that Nature's forces didn't harm us. We could stand in a blizzard for a whole week without being scratched. A few rare Pactmakers could breathe underwater, too.

"As powerful as you will be and as powerful as you are, there is one downside to being this Knight," Medius said. "You will be twice as fragile as a normal person. In other words, you can be harmed much more easily than a normal person." I nodded.

"Thank you for all your help. Hopefully, I'll be able to maintain my powers," I said. Before I left I bade goodbye to Setti and walked off toward the castle.


	4. Prologue: Part 3

I was in Balastor Plain again. This time, Setti was with me and I brought my two swords.

"You actually brought a weapon today," Setti said. I lightly punched him in the arm.

"Shut up! I never had any weapon to use before yesterday," I said.

"Well, you should always bring a weapon whenever you go into the wild. You never know what'll come up," he said. We walked around the plains like we did every day. Randomly, I realized something about Setti.

"Hey Setti…" I said.

"Huh? Yeah?" he said. I slightly leaned toward him and smelled him. It was so random, but it just occurred to me.

"You smell like fresh water," I said.

Setti looked at me doubtfully. "Does fresh water even have a scent? The last time I checked, fresh water doesn't smell like anything."

I tapped my chin. "You know, I think I just discovered something else about the Silver Knight. I think the Pactmaker can smell other people's nature scents."

"Really?" Setti doubted. "You're weird, Valora."

I shoved him with my shoulder. "It's not like you're any better, Setti! You've got turquoise hair!" I seized his shirt sleeve and kissed him on his cheek. "But it makes you look cute." I smiled brightly.

Setti lightly blushed. "Thanks…?" He held my hand as we started walking through Balastor Plain.

[Time skip to nighttime] ((Author's note: I did a time skip because I assume you're getting bored reading the childhood. I just thought I'd get to the important part. ))

Farians were outside the castle at this instant. Apparently, I was told to leave the battle alone and stay in my room. I was lying down in bed while holding my left hand sword. The sword was truly a beautiful sight. It was shorter than a sword, but longer than a dagger. The blade was gleaming silver with a vine of flowers going down the left side. Its hilt was silver with a green vine spiraling around the hilt. I put down my sword and then started fidgeting with the Ark.

"At least it's discrete. There could be a million other ribbons like this one. No one would suspect this being the Silver Knight's Ark," I said. The ribbon felt so silky. My thoughts shattered when I heard a scream coming from the queen's room.

_What in the—! _ I thought. I grabbed both of my unsheathed swords and ran to her room. Inside her room there was tiny little Cisna hugging a pillow while her mother tried to evade an intruder whom was trying to kill her. When the queen got cornered, the intruder stabbed her right through the heart. Blood spilled on the floor and Cisna trembled crazily. The man pulled his sword out of the queen's chest and her corpse fell to the ground.

My hands trembled with anger. Even though Floraine wasn't my real mother, she treated me like I was her own real daughter. I pointed my right hand sword at the man. "Hey you! You may have a grudge against the queen, or maybe against Balandor itself. But that doesn't give you the right just to go out and kill her!"With my right sword, I slashed at him. He just blocked, but then I swung my left at his blind side. Almost immediately, he jumped back. Abruptly he thrust his sword at my head, but I dodged to the side and horizontally slashed at his side. Again, I missed but I managed a small cut. Our swords continued clashing until the king rushed in. The intruder jumped out the window and I yelled, "I'll get you! I'll get my revenge! Mark my words, I _will _avenge the queen!" My fist now had a thin layer of ice on it. I pushed my anger away and the ice on my fist went back into my skin. When the king walked in, he looked totally shocked. He knelt down beside the queen's corpse.

"Floraine…oh gods, no…Floraine!" he cried. "Valora, who did this? I demand an answer!"

"I-it was a Farian. He invaded the castle and killed the queen. I tried to kill him but…" I looked down at me swords. "He got away."

That night was a very long night. The soldiers pleaded for the fighting to stop. A week later, we made peace with Faria. That morning wasn't happy though, at least for me it wasn't.

"I know we have made peace with the Farians, my daughters," he said. "But others still may come and assassinate the monarchs. Valora, I observed your excellent swordsmanship last night. I am assigning you to guard Cisna." He saw me practicing with my swords last night?

I eyes widened. "Wha-what?"

"You must stay at her side, whatever the cost. You will go wherever Cisna wishes to go, and that will only be within the castle," he said. "Do you accept this honorable job?"

I tried not to fall on my knees. Stay only within the castle? That would nearly be impossible for me. But he was a king, and Cisna was a princess. If I turned this down, I would be considered a disgrace and a scum. Plus, Cisna trusted me more than anyone. If I just abandoned her, she would never forgive me. "I accept. I will guard Cisna with my life. I pledge to Balandor, I will guard the princess."

Instead of me following Cisna wherever she went, she followed me wherever I went. When sunset came, I wrote a letter to Setti.

_Dear Setti,_

_How are you? I'm sorry I didn't meet you in Balastor (or Greydall) today. You see, I've become the bodyguard of Cisna. Ever since the queen got killed, Cisna hasn't spoken a word to others. Sometimes she would have small conversation with me, but she won't say anything when we're around others. Sigh…I really miss you, Setti. It's hard being stuck in a castle all day. I would much rather play with you than guard the monarchs. Do you hate me for doing this? I'm so sorry for all of this. I don't know when I'll see you again. Maybe I'll never see you again. _

_I'm sorry, and I miss you very much._

_ Valora_


	5. Chapter 1: A New Life

[Ten years later]

"I'm sorry, Father, but I need a new life," I said. "My life really has no significance to it." I had tried to convince him for the past week then. At that moment, I had been convincing him for around half an hour.

"Valora, please. We need you at the castle. Cisna must be guarded," Valtos pleaded.

"I've guarded her for ten years now. I'm getting tired of this. No one has broken into the castle ever since we made peace with Faria. I believe Cisna will be safe. Plus, I have already become of age. I need my own life, not a life where I have boundaries."

Valtos sighed. "I understand. Very well then, Valora. I will arrange a house for you within the kingdom." I bowed and left the throne room. In the past ten years, I never saw Setti again. He would be twenty-years old by now. A week ago, I turned eighteen. When I once ran an errand into town, I heard rumors that "Cisna never spoke a word ever since the queen died." Pfft, yeah right. Cisna never spoke a word to anyone, but me. (Back to the story) When I walked in my room, I saw all my stuff packed. Immediately, I smelled a mix of fresh water, flowers, and citrus. Athrenia was in my room.. She packed my stuff. In my mind, I gave Athrenia my thanks. I pushed all my stuff out of the way and looked in the mirror. My appearance was really something. I was totally beautiful. I didn't like being _too_ beautiful. I was the spitting image of Athrenia. The only thing different about us was that she had long silver hair and I had shoulder length pitch black hair. My skin tone was the same as Athrenia's, not tan, not pale but in the middle. Our Asian-American eyes were the exact same too. My irises changed over time. They now looked more like diamonds rather than sparkles, just like Athrenia. My voice also sounded absolutely beautiful, and I could sing with a beautiful voice too. I wasn't wearing any more dresses. I was wearing more of a town outfit ((author's note: she's wearing the Traveler's Robe except the sleeves are white silk and the torso is indigo silk. Her shorts are black cotton, like the cotton trousers/shorts just black. Her boots are the same as the cotton boots except the green part is dark blue and it doesn't have the yellow/orange triangular design on the boots.)). The Silver Knight's Ark was tied in a bow around my neck. I turned away from the mirror and gazed out my window. My eyes focused on the house with the blue roof.

"*sigh* I wonder how Setti's doing. I feel awful about not seeing him after these years," I groaned. "He probably hates me for accepting this job. Maybe he doesn't even remember me."

"Valora, why do you have to leave?" Cisna said as she room walked in my. She looked sad as she always did, but this time she looked like her mother died all over again.

"Cisna, I'm sorry. I really think I need a better life," I said. "Being in a castle all day is really hard for me."

"Are you leaving because you hate me?" she asked. Did she just ignore everything I said?

I walked up to her and hugged her. I was two weeks older than her and she was about as tall as I was. "Cisna I would never hate you. You're my only family, even though you're not my real sibling. To be honest, I never thought Valtos as my father, real or fake."

"Thank you, Valora. You always know how to comfort me."

[A week later]

I got settled in my new house and new life pretty quickly. The gods were my company since I didn't have anyone to talk with and I didn't have the courage to talk to Setti. I got a job at Rapacci Wines (just for an occupation, because I was still pretty rich because I just descended from a castle), and on Cisna's birthday was my first day working.

I was peeking around the wine shop. My partner was late. After about thirty minutes, an easy-going eighteen-year old walked in. He looked just like Wizel except for the hair color and the hairstyle (yes, he was handsome). His hair was light brown and it was "messy." I didn't know how to describe it. His eyes were light blue. Only when he turned around to shut the door did I realize he had an out-of-the-picture ponytail at the back of his hair. I blushed a little just looking at him.

"Dammit, Leonard!" Rapacci yelled.

"Whoa!" Leonard (which I assumed was his name) exclaimed.

"Where the hell have you been?" Rapacci yelled. I rushed over to them and got in front of Leonard.

"Move it, Valora! Today is an important day for Rapacci Wines and your lousy partner needs to be reminded!" Rapacci yelled.

"We know, we know, right Leonard? Today is Princess Cisna's birthday. She has officially become of age and this winery was asked supply wine for her ball," I said.

"Pfft, your lousy partner didn't know. I hired a beastwain to cart the wine, got it?" he snapped. "Now get your butts moving!"

"Yeah, we know," Leonard said. "Valora, let's go." We walked outside the winery and into the town. "Okay, we have to fetch the barrels from the Parma warehouse using the beastwain. Boy, that's a lot of work!"

"That barely sounds like anything," I said doubtfully. "Well, we should get going."

"Wait, maybe we should _formally _introduce ourselves. You know, since we only found out each other's names just by hearing Rapacci," I said using an extremely kind tone. "I'm Valora."

He smiled. "I'm Leonard. And…I'm looking forward to working with you, Valora." Leonard and I started walked to one of the gates. After walking for two minutes, I realized Leonard wasn't beside me anymore. I saw him staring at a man covered in a cloak who just passed by, but his eyes didn't move even after the man left. That made him seem like he was staring at a girl on the sidewalk. I decided to make a joke about that.

I walked up to him and poked him. "C'mon Leonard, you can get a girlfriend later. We've got something more important than you admiring that girl over there."

"I wasn't staring at that girl!" Leonard complained. When we got close to the gate, a circus came. People started rushing toward the gate, and we stood in the side to observe.

"Ladies and gentleman! Young and old of Balandor! In honor of her highness's coming-of-age day, I give you wonders aplenty and sights unlike any! Step right up, the Marcus Revelers have arrived!" the fat person on the circus said. There were clowns everywhere on the thing. Some were jumping on beach balls being spun by other clowns. Some looked plain goofy with their dancing and flipping. Then there were the ones "playing with fire."

"I've never seen a circus!" Leonard exclaimed. "This is going to be some party." Huh, hell yeah. The aura from the circus felt really evil, and I didn't like it. I got a bad feeling about that circus. We walked out of the gate and into the plain I completely loved.

"So Valora," Leonard asked, "How long have you been living in Balandor?"

"Hm? Oh I've lived in Balandor all my life. I know Balastor Plain like my own name," I said.

"Okay, that makes things easier! Just keep on the lookout for monsters," Leonard said.

"Don't worry, I'll never forget to do that," I muttered remembering the time a Vespid tried to kill me. So Leonard and I started walking for Parma. We had our swords unsheathed already, just in case of surprise attacks. The monsters were encountered were mostly Vespids. When Leonard was about to kill a Kibble and a Polkan, I immediately stopped him from stabbing the Kibble through its head.

"Go to hell, Leonard!" I scolded. "Kibbles and Polkans are innocent! Don't you think they're cute? And they don't even attack!"

"Well excuse me!" Leonard said sarcastically. "I always thought them as little runts!"

"You're a little runt!" I shouted.

"You're younger and shorter than me!"

By the time we reached Parma, the sun was already setting. _Jeez Aldomaea_, I thought. _Why do you have to make days so short?_

"Well, here we are!" Leonard said. "Welcome to Parma."

"It's a nice place. Small and peaceful," I said.

"Hey, you're on time for once," a girl's voice said. We turned around and I saw a pink haired girl that looked just like Lutius with the facial features, except this girl would be considered "cute."

"Yulie!" Leonard said in a surprised tone.

"How've you been there, Leonard?" she asked. Yulie's attention turned to me. "Oh, you must be the new girl! I got a notice saying you were coming. You're quite the beauty, aren't you?"

I blushed. "Oh…thanks? My name's Valora."

"That's a pretty name. Hey Leonard, the wine's all set to go. Follow me," Yulie said. We followed her, and then Yulie started to walk beside me.

"Is there something wrong, Yulie?" I asked her. She walked beside me while analyzing my face.

"Oh nothing. Just wondering, but how many times have you been asked out?" she asked.

I chuckled. "More than I can count. I turned down all the boys who asked. They weren't my type."

"Has Leonard asked you?" Yulie giggled.

"No, and I don't think he will. He treats me like any other girl," I said. After we crossed the bridge, there was this beast-thing with a wagon of barrels attached to its saddle.

"You must be kidding," Leonard said staring at the beastwain. I was pretty surprised at it myself.

"You don't need to worry. His looks are nothing. He's a big ol' pussycat," Yulie said.

"You would consider this thing a pussycat, huh?" I said.

"Now…where…" Yulie said thinking out loud. "Raus said he'd be here…"

"Who?" Leonard quickly said.

"Your driver. Raus is the only one who can get this fella to pull the wain. It won't move a step, not without Raus's say-so," Yulie said. "Sit tight. I'll see if I can find him."

We walked around the village trying to find Raus. People around the village told us useless stuff. They said he was a drunk. Well, wasn't that comforting? A drunk driver, just lovely. The last place we searched was behind the fence near the entrance to Parma. I walked up to a tree stump where I saw a Papitaur (the little rabbit people) sleeping against it. There were four wine bottles around him.

"Um…Leonard?" I said tugging his sleeve. "I think I found him. You know, Raus." Leonard looked at where the little Papitaur was sleeping and he leaned forward for a look closer at him.

Yulie turned around and saw the Papitaur. She ran toward him and said, "Ah ha! Raus you oaf!"

"Oh, dear me," Raus worried. "Did I doze off again?"

"_This _is where you were hiding?" Yulie demanded. She picked him up at the back of his hair. "I told you not to be late!" Yulie dropped him and Raus "hid" behind Leonard's left leg.

"Please don't be mad, Miss Yulie!" Raus pleaded. "I am so sorry!"

"Yulie, c'mon!" I said. "Don't be so hard on him. Look how tiny he is!"

Yulie snorted. "He's a drunk, that's what he is."

After we got everything set, we got ready to go out into the wild. Leonard went to buy a new sword and Yulie went to get her knife. I sat by the beastwain and waited for them. Leonard and Yulie came running back to the wain.

"Okay, we're ready to go," Yulie said. I planted my sword in the ground and used it to help me stand up.

"Wait a second, 'we'?" Leonard gave her a surprised look.

"Well yeah! I wouldn't miss this party for the world. What, you don't want any extra help?" Yulie pouted.

I placed my left hand on Leonard's shoulder. "Don't even try to fight her. You'll never win a verbal fight with a girl." Leonard let out a sigh and I heard him mutter "Girls can be so weird."

We got back on the plains. There were no more Vespids. Technically Leonard and I killed them all and I told Yulie that she wasn't allowed to kill Kibbles/Polkans. After we were about halfway to Balandor, Leonard noticed something.

"Wait, something's wrong," Leonard said. We stopped, and we all looked at Leonard.

"What is it?" Yulie asked.

"What's wrong, Chief?" Raus asked.

Leonard looked disturbed. "You don't hear that?" Yeah, I didn't hear it. I felt its aura. No doubt about it, there was a troll coming our way.

"Oh. My. _Hell_," I said. A troll came from behind and cliff, and its eyes darted directly toward me and I felt paralyzed. _Larvayne, Athrenia, do something!_ I screamed in my head. Before I could run for it, the troll swung its club right at me and I slammed into a tree, knocking me unconscious.

* * *

_**So, how was the first chapter? Please review! And if you think it's crappy, don't even review, it's not like anyone would care. Oh yeah, this is Valora's looks:**_

_**Eyebrow Type: 08**_

_**Eye type: 09**_

_**Nose type: 02**_

_**Mouth type: 05**_

_**Ear type: 01**_

_**Hairstyle: 40**_

_**Hair color: Top right corner/pitch black**_

_**Proportions: 25**_

_**Fat: 27 (I know if you take off her top, she'll be incredibly skinny. It's just that with that much fat, she looks decent in her clothing. If it's higher, she'll look fat in her clothes)**_

_**Muscle: 33**_

_**Leg length: 80**_

_**Skin color: 2nd to bottom on the far left side**_


	6. Chapter 2: Awakening

**_Hi, Hoshi here again. If you made Valora, I bet you don't think she's "absolutely beautiful." Even to me she's only very pretty. I only described her as absolutely beautiful because it's a common habit I have with making FanFictional characters. They always have to be described as beautiful. Don't ask why, it's just something I do. And her name is pronounced as Vuh-LOR-uh. Not "Valor"-uh. Her namesake is from her ancestors. She decends from a family possesing great valor (I don't really know why I decided to say that...)._**

* * *

"Do you think she's gonna be okay?" I heard the voice of Leonard say. "She's been passed out for a long time."

"Well, she seems to be recovering. Her breathing and pulse is fine," I heard Yulie say. "But she's pretty wounded and one of her ribs are broken."

"Guys, I'm okay. Don't worry," I said. I sat up feeling a bit of pain, but the heal spell I casted on myself healed most of my wounds. For the rest of the way to Balandor, we traveled in silence. I sat next to Raus while I recovered. Once we reached the gates, it was already dark. _Damn you, Dinivas and Aldomaea. You made nighttime come too soon._

"Oh man," Leonard moaned. "It's way passed dark. I told Rapacci we'd be back before dark. I am so dead."

"Well moaning about it isn't going to speed us up," Yulie reminded. Yeah, it didn't speed us up. It wasn't like we were going fast anyway. In town square, there was the Marcus Revelers.

"Hey, something's going on!" Yulie exclaimed.

"Ooh! I just love festivities!" Raus said excitedly.

"'Wonders aplenty and sights unlike any,'" Leonard repeated the same thing the fat person on the circus said. "Sorry, folks, but the delivery comes first." Yulie hung her head as we continued to the castle. In front of the drawbridge, there were two stupid gate guards.

"Who are you?" one of them said. Leonard walked to the front while Yulie and I stood behind him fake smiling.

"Rapacci Wines, sir. We're here to deliver tonight's wine," Leonard said. Yulie bowed, but I didn't even bother to do so.

"Alright, we've been expecting you," the one on the left said, "though you were supposed to be here hours ago."

"Where the hell have you been?" the one on the right said. "Merchants shouldn't keep the castle waiting."

"Well, you see," Leonard started saying, "we were attacked by a monster on the way to the warehouse and—"

"Stuff the excuses and get that wine inside now," the guard on the right snapped. I stepped in front of Leonard.

"Sirs, my friend here isn't lying. You as gate guards should know very well that there are several monsters out in the wild. One attacked us and held us back," I said annoyed. The guards quickly kneeled.

"O-of course! We're sorry for our rudeness," the one on the left said.

Yulie glanced at me. "What was that for? I mean, why'd they kneel?"

I flashed a dazzling smile. "Beauty can easily win people over," I lied. Those gate guards knew I was Princess Valora, so they did it out of respect. (Back to the story) We led the beastwain across the drawbridge and in front of the stairs there were two commoner ladies waiting.

"Good evening ma'am," Leonard said. "Here's your wine order."

"Thank you, lad. This will do fine," the older woman said.

"Right, we'll be off then," he said. We started to walk away, but Leonard turned around and started walking toward the castle. Well, this should be interesting. Yulie and I followed him to the castle's doors.

"Leonard, what are you doing?" Yulie demanded. "You can't go in there!"

He smiled. "What's wrong with one quick peek?"

Yulie looked at me expectantly. "Valora, do something! We both know we can't go in there!"

"I think we're going to be okay," I said. After all, I was Princess Valora of Balandor.

Inside the ball was really a sight. Of course, I'd seen one millions of times since I was the adoptive daughter of King Valtos. This was no different for the others, except for the occasion. People were dancing with joy. All of them looked rich, judging by their attire. We looked around, and walked to the side where no one could see us commoners. After a few minutes passed, the music stopped. From the staircase, I saw Cisna walking down with her two butt-ugly hand maids. Cisna looked breath taking in the dress she was wearing. She stepped in front of her father, took a breath, and faced her people. I noticed Leonard staring at Cisna with a certain look in his eyes. Yulie put her arms on Leonard's neck and pushed his head down.

"Whatcha doing, Leonard?" she asked. Yulie turned her eyes to the princess. "It's rude to stare at royalty, you know."

"My noble friends," Valtos started to say. Everyone had a goblet in their hand (excluding me and my friends) as they listened to Valtos give his speech, "I thank you all for coming to celebrate this special day with my daughter. How proud the late queen would be. It has been ten years since my beloved wife was lost to me." I growled. He just _had_ to bring up Floraine, didn't he? Tears started to form in my eyes, but I forced myself not to cry at the painful memory.

"Today," Valtos continued, "the daughter she gave me, my dearest Cisna, celebrates her eighteenth birthday. The kindness you have shown her has made this day possible. For that you have my deepest gratitude. Please enjoy this evening's festivities. Glory to Balandor!"

"Glory to Balandor!" the guests repeated after him while raising their goblets. The music started again and the people started dancing.

"That's weird…" Leonard stared at Cisna. "Doesn't she look kind of sad to you?"

"You think so? Well, rumor is that she hasn't spoken a word for ten whole years. Not since the queen was killed," Yulie said holding her plate of cake. "You know, when Faria attacked the castle."

"She witnessed the queen's death right before her very eyes," I said remembering that day ten years ago. Right after that statement and I mean _right _after that statement, I felt the same evil aura I felt when I was near the circus. A gate guard came barging through the castle's doors. He ran limping toward the king.

"Y-you're Grace, a message!" he said desperately. The king didn't look too pleased.

"This is a celebration! What the devil is it?" Valtos said annoyed. He cared more about the celebration than an urgent message? What an idiot! I ran up to the king as well, since the guard dropped before he could even tell Valtos what happened.

"Father, the town's in trouble! There's some kind of monster, killing the civilians!" I worried. The other people in the room were muttering about how a commoner girl like me called him father. Psh, they needed to shut up!

"A mon—" Father was cut off when a huge Pyredaemos destroyed the doors to the ballroom. Sir Cyrus and his soldiers ran in front of the Magi. They started clashing swords. As some of the pillars fell, the castle started to crumble along with it.

"Cisna, Valora, this way," Valtos said. Cisna took a desperate glance at me as we followed our father up the stairs. Before we were even halfway up, there was a clad in iron black armor blocking our path. Cisna gasped with absolute horror. Valtos glared at the man, but the man in black armor just stabbed Valtos through his heart. Blood pooled around our feet, and I shrieked.

"Father…" Cisna whispered. "No…no!" We quickly ran to our father and knelt beside his dying body. "Father, please. Please don't die!" Cisna began to cry a little.

"Ah, Cisna…" Valtos said in a weak voice. "At last I hear your voice again. How I have missed…missed the sound of it… Go, you must, my beautiful daughters…"

"No, I won't leave you," Cisna sobbed. "Please Father, don't die! Please! NO!" I was pretty sad myself. My valor completely drained at the sight of my dead Father as the clad in black armor got ready to kill us. Just before he was about to strike, Leonard came out of nowhere and prevented the clad from killing me and Cisna by blocking with his sword.

"Princess, Valora, this way!" Leonard quickly grabbed Cisna's wrist and pulled her down the stairs. I quickly followed behind them.

"FATHER!" Cisna shrieked.

"C'mon, we have to go or they'll kill you!" he yelled.

"B-but…my father…" her sentence trailed off as Leonard pulled her down the stairs.

"Quick, this way!" Leonard's eyes turned toward the same guy we saw in the iron black armor. There was just one thing…I saw him go up the stairs, but somehow he was downstairs. My aura sensors turned on. The clad that was in front of us now was a different person. This person's aura felt different than the on one the stairs. Well, then when I realized it, the person at the stairs didn't even have an aura. He could block my sensors!

"This way." How many times did Leonard say "this way" already? Three? We continued running while Leonard killed the Magi in our way. Eventually, Cisna either tripped on her dress or fell from fatigue.

"Cisna, please. We have to get out of here or we'll get killed." I used my soothing voice, but Cisna wouldn't stand up.

"Come on. I won't let them get you. Not you." Leonard knelt down and placed his hands on her shoulders.

Cisna looked up at Leonard with sad/desperate eyes. "Who are you?"

"I'm Leonard," he said. I stared at the two and blushed.

"Why did you…?"

"Well…" Leonard took awhile before he continued his sentence. "It's just, I care about you, you know?" My face turned even redder after he said that.

"Oh…uh, I mean we all do. Care about you, I mean. You're kingdom loves and needs you." My hands were about to turn to ice from embarrassment ((author's note: Valora's "opposite" from others. For example, when she's mad she gets mad in a cold way [no pun intended] so her fists turn to ice and her hair ignites with blue fire [and it doesn't burn/freeze her])). Leonard extended his hands toward Cisna and helped her up. They stared eye-to-eye until their moment was ruined when a pillar was burnt down.

"Are you survivors?" an unfamiliar voice called. We turned and saw an old man with a long sword ((author's note: when I first played the game, I thought Eldore had a long sword so throughout the game, I gave him long swords rather than regular swords)). "This way, to the cellars."

"The cellars?" That place wasn't too bright. In the past ten years, I would go down there and train with my swords, powers, and Knight. Still, we followed the order as we ran down to them.

[In the cellars now]

Parts of the stairs were destroyed. There were new waterfalls that I created with my water abilities. We panted as we ran down the stairs. My panting was fake. Being surrounded by at least one element of nature replenished my energy.

"No, not this way!" Cisna worried.

"Sorry, but we don't have any other choice!" Leonard argued. Cisna didn't talk back, but she still disliked the idea of being in the cellars. Gradually, Cisna got slower and slower until she couldn't run anymore.

"I…I can't run…anymore…" Cisna panted and coughed from fatigue. Leonard sighed and swept Cisna off the ground, holding her in his arms (most would call this "carrying her bridal style") and we started running again.

"Wait a minute, Leonard…" we stopped in front of the treasure vault.

"What is it Valora?" he looked over his shoulder at me.

"This is the treasure vault." The aura in there felt incredibly powerful. It felt just like Wizel's aura, too. "I just don't feel right about going in there."

"Well, I'd rather be in there than wait here twiddling our thumbs while the enemies get closer and closer." Right before we entered the treasure vault, the Pyredaemos came running behind us. The three of us (or two of us, since Cisna was being carried) ran into the treasure vault. Unfortunately, we were blasted by the Pyredaemos's dramatic entrance into the vault. I don't know how many seconds we lied on the ground, but we took awhile before we got up. Cisna was lying down on Leonard's chest. She quickly pushed off of him and Leonard sat up. I on the other hand, landed on my front. I pushed myself up and looked at the thing in front of me. My eyes widened.

"Oh my gods…th-that's…" my sentence trailed off as I stared at the White Knight.

"What's that?" Leonard asked staring at the Knight.

"We found this armor…" Cisna started, "seventeen years ago, after the Cataclysm. No one knows where it came from, but our scholars think this is something made by the gods. And the Ancients used it in war

"Those Ancients must've been pretty tall," Leonard stated.

"That is an—" the same man from before started but I cut him off. He was coming up behind us.

"Incorruptus," I finished.

"What?" Leonard looked at the man confused.

"A weapon of war, crafted directly from the gods' powers," I said. Yeah, in this Knight's case, it was crafted by Wizel, god of Light.

"It is an awesome, cursed power," the man said.

"A weapon?" Leonard wondered.

"The castle's raiders are after this. They seek a holy relic known as the Ark, the key to the Incorruptus's power," the old man said.

"Ark…?" Leonard looked really stupid being all confused by this. The Pyredaemos destroyed the walls and came into the vault.

"It's back!" Leonard yelled.

"Just _lovely_," I said sarcastically. Leonard stepped up to the Ark.

"What are you _doing?_" the old man yelled.

"Fighting! You said it was a weapon, right? Well, right now seems like a damn good time to use it!" For no apparent reason, Cisna's body jerked and she started to glow blue. She seemed to be chanting something.

"Fool! Stay away from it if you want to live!" the old man tried to convince Leonard not to get to the Ark, but Leonard wouldn't listen. "Only the worthy are permitted to touch that!"

"Give him a chance, sir." I turned to the man. "There's something about this boy…something that assures me he's the destined Pactmaker for this Knight."

_Valora. _Wizel's voice spoke in my head. _You're sister, Cisna, she's using Ancient magic the Athwani used on the Knights. This time, she's unsealing the Knight. By the way, I'm glad you realized Leonard's my Pactmaker. Just make sure Eldore stays away from him while the pact is being made._ I assumed Eldore was the old man next to me. Leonard placed the Ark on his left hand. It started to shake and beams of light erupted from it. _Wizel, you better make sure he stays alive._ The beams of light faded after one and half seconds, and the glow died around Leonard. I had realized the blue glow around Cisna died too.

"He's alive. I don't believe it. Could he really be one of the worthy?" Eldore stared at Leonard with amazement.

"How do you feel, Leonard?" I asked him.

"Millions of times stronger. Like I could take on that monster that invaded the castle." Leonard analyzed the Ark while we stood and heard the Pyredaemos stomping in the vault. Leonard confidently turned around to face the beast.

He started chanting in an echoed voice. "_O Wizel, White Warrior, wielder of the Ancient Sword…_" He sounded just like I did when I said the chant for the Silver Knight. The Pyredaemos slammed his foot right on Leonard. At first I thought he would be dead, but his aura was still clear to me.

"Watch out!" Cisna cried a second too late. "No…!" The Pyredaemos placed its hand on the White Knight's armor to destroy the chains. For some reason, it then bit the head of the armor. The armor fell from the wall and the monster placed its foot on it. Leonard appeared on the other side of the Pyredaemos's leg. His eyes looked almost as fierce as Larvayne's eyes.

"…grant me your power." Leonard placed the dagger in the gauntlet. "Verto." The Knight's armor shined sky blue as the Pyredaemos staggered back. A dark blue mist with threads of light surrounded him. The floor around him changed into stained glass (I knew that from experience with transforming for the first time into my Knight). When the mist cleared, in Leonard's place was the White Knight with small clouds around him. The Pyredaemos got ready to fight Leonard.

"This is…unexpected indeed," Eldore said. Cyrus, three guards, and Yulie came running in the vault.

"Sir Cyrus, look!" one of the guards said.

"How can this be? Im-impossible! W-why is it moving?" Cyrus exclaimed.

"Is that you…Leonard?" Yulie gazed at the Knight. A blue light formed in Leonard's hand as it materialized into a sword. He started to a fight with the Pyredaemos. The first thing he did was slash at its turret. The Pyredaemos shoved its head into Leonard's torso, and he staggered back a few steps. After a few minutes, Leonard decided to destroy the castle.

"_Fighting's too risky here. Change of plans_!" Leonard lifted up the Pyredaemos and jumped. He took it up to the next floor.

"Leonard, you're so reckless!" I took off running as fast as lightning flashed. The first thing I saw when I got to the top was Leonard punching the monster outside.

"_Whoa…did I just do that?_" Leonard mused looking at his hands.

"Yeah, you did! Not get out there before the monster starts destroying the town!" I snapped. He ran outside and I followed behind him. For the third time, Leonard clashed with the monster. After one final slash, the Pyredaemos finally dropped dead.

"The lad did it…" Eldore said astonished. Leonard knelt as threads of light swirled around him. He reverted back to human form looking a little worn out.

"It's over?" Leonard looked at his hands. "But how did I…where did I…?" From behind, we heard Cisna scream. There was the clad in black armor and the fat person from the circus holding Cisna. Something metal dropped from overhead. I saw the three get on the metal anchor into a ship above us. Leonard ran toward the anchor.

"Princess!" Leonard yelled. Cisna turned around.

"Cisna!" I screamed.

"Leonard, Valora!" she called.

"CISNA!" he looked at the monoship that was flying away.

[Hours later, now in the throne/ballroom]

Cyrus fell to his knees. "It cannot be! The king cannot be dead!"

"Yeah he can. You know, Cyrus, there's this thing. It's called _death_," I said bluntly.

Cyrus slammed his fist on the floor. "How can you say that, Princess? He was your own father! He cared for you! Eighteen years he raised you as his own! And yet, you accept his death like any other?"

Sarvain knelt beside him. "Sir Cyrus, I share your pain but we must accept this, just as Princess Valora is doing. Sadly, we are the only ones who can hold this kingdom together. Think of Balandor."

"Sarvain, you do not share my pain. The king was like a father to me. He cared for me since I was a child. There is no Balandor without King Valtos," he snapped.

"I'm really starting to think you're mentally ill, Cyrus. Balandor is clearly still here." I always hated Cyrus. I didn't know why, I just did.

"Ours is not the only leader lost. Do not forget, Sir, that Archduke Dalam of Faria is also dead," Sarvain said. "It is very likely that Faria will hold Balandor accountable for the archduke's murder. Presumably their governing council is still dominated by the War Faction, we must prepare the city for an almost certain invasion. Though it pains me greatly to say it, we have no time for grief. For now, we have two priorities: rescue Princess Cisna and restore the kingdom. Put your sadness aside and remember your duty as captain of the Castleguard comes before your personal emotions." Sarvain turned his attention to Leonard. "As for the boy—Leonard if I'm not mistaken? You hold the Knight's Ark and know how to control its power. That means you have made a pact with the Knight."

"Me? A pact?" Leonard looked up from his lap.

"It is said that the Knight is a weapon crafted long, long ago from the gods. It was given to our predecessors, the Ancients. In their writings, they referred to it as the Incorruptus. When the Cataclysm seventeen years ago opened the ground, buried ruins were uncovered. Among them was the temple in which the Knight was found. We recovered it and brought it here to the treasure vault. The king's scholars and scientists spent years studying the artifact. But for all their poking and prodding, they were never able to unlock its secrets. What we learned was that only people the Knight deems worthy have the right to wield its power: these are the Knight's Pactmakers. The ancient book would tell us no more than that." If they knew about me being the Silver Knight, I would've explained into further detail.

"Sarvain, he's just a boy," Cyrus argued.

"Hey… Don't ask me how I unlocked it. I just did," Leonard said.

I smiled at Leonard. "Like Sarvain said, only those worthy are deemed to touch it and the Knights were crafted directly from the gods. The god who created the Knight chose you to have its power."

Sarvain straightened. "Leonard, I have a very important task for you. You must hurry after the Princess at once, and use the Knight's power to rescue her from her captors."

"Hmm?" Leonard looked up from his lap again.

"Are you mad?" Cyrus stepped forward.

"Just a damned minute!" Yulie snapped. "Leonard isn't part of the royal army. Why send him? Valora, you're princess right? Stop them!"

"The circumstances demand it. The villains who attacked us are a part of the group who worship the Ancients. We call them the Magi, because it's their ancient magic they use to summon forth their vicious beasts. They are powerful, but not powerful enough to stand against your Knight." Sarvain eyed me.

"So what? Solve your own problems!" Yulie snapped.

"Pardon?" Sarvain said.

"Yulie, it's okay. I'll do it," Leonard said.

"What? But—" Yulie didn't finish her sentence.

Leonard stood up. "She needs me. If I can help…" Leonard balled his hand into a fist. "I want to."

"Very noble, Leonard. Doing this job is helping me too. For that, I'll go with you," I said. "Plus, I have pretty special abilities. I can sense aura, and in addition to my exceptional skill with double swords, I can make it."

"Princess Valora, are you sure? Your kingdom needs you," Sarvain said. I shook my head.

"I'm not a full-blood princess. I have no right to be queen, or be part of anything within the castle. I need my own life," I said. I felt Eldore's aura come closer to us.

"Then it's settled, is it?" Eldore said. "We'd best hurry. The longer we tarry here, the further away they'll get."

"And you are…?" Sarvain asked.

"The name's Eldore…just a humble traveler, but I can fight and cast a few spells," he said. "I'd wager I could be of help. Surely you weren't going to send those two alone?"

"Then allow me to join you!" Cyrus insisted.

"No, Cyrus," I growled. "You don't dare come with us. Plus, the kingdom needs you here. And I don't like you anyway."

"And leave it to strangers—" when Cyrus said "strangers," I moved as fast as lightning and punched Cyrus in his face.

"You _will _stay within the kingdom, Cyrus. You were never noble enough for the standards anyway. You're always so full of yourself! You strive to do anything just to get attention and promotion!" I yelled. I drew my sword and pointed it at him. Cyrus stared at me with fear in his eyes.

"Y-yes, milady," Cyrus stammered.

"We'll leave on the morrow. We'll rest in town tonight," Eldore said.

"No need. You can use the guest rooms in the castle," I said. "We've got an armory full of weapons, so you can get anything you need there."


	7. Sorry! Notice from author

Hey, Hoshi here. How's my WKC story so far? Crappy? Yeah…I may delete it and rewrite it. I find it…unpopular. Not many people have read it and I have no reviews. So…yeah. Notify me if you don't want me to delete it. Honestly, I think it sucks. What's more, is that I totally wrote it in my own words. I beat the game back in January and started to write the story in February. Now my mind for writing WKC has changed. Review or send me a PM about your opinion of what I should do (not that I expect anyone to, but it's worth a try).


	8. Decision about my story

Hey, Hoshi here. How's my WKC story so far? Crappy? Yeah…I may delete it and rewrite it. I find it…unpopular. Not many people have read it and I have no reviews. So…yeah. Notify me if you don't want me to delete it. Honestly, I think it sucks. What's more, is that I totally wrote it in my own words. I beat the game back in January and started to write the story in February. Now my mind for writing WKC has changed. Review or send me a PM about your opinion of what I should do (not that I expect anyone to, but it's worth a try).


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